Qualcomm is upping the ante in its global push to bring 5G to the masses.
The U.S. semiconductor and telecom giant revealed Monday it is acquiring the remaining portion of RF360, its joint venture with Japanese electronics giant TDK Corporation. The company expects the deal to aid in the development of efficient 5G devices. Qualcomm said the deal brings the total purchase price of RF360 to $3.1 billion.
"We're adding a number of new employees to Qualcomm, and it's just the last milestone in our journey to be building RF [radio frequency] business for Qualcomm," said Cristiano Amon, President of Qualcomm, in an interview with Cheddar Monday. A statement from the company says the full acquisition of RF360 means Qualcomm will be "able to provide customers a complete end-to-end solution from modem to antenna."
"The next goal, which I think will start in 2020, is to scale 5G," said Amon. He told Cheddar a top priority for the tech company is "getting 5G not only in the premium tier, but bring to our 7 and 6 series Snapdragon platforms [mobile processors] so we can have phones at multiple platforms for 5G."
The San Diego-based tech company announced earlier this month that it is expanding its portfolio of 5G mobile platform across Snapdragon 8 Series, 7 Series, and 6 Series in 2020. Qualcomm said the rollout has the potential to make 5G accessible to more than 2 billion smartphone users, which Amon said will be most impactful for consumers in services such as video game streaming and social media.
"More and more video will be consumed in mobile devices, and even live content, or sports content, because you have the reliability," Amon said. "Social, a lot more of interaction will happen because of the response time. There's going to be a lot more live aspects to Facebook and the other social platforms. And then we go into gaming," he added. "You'll see gaming evolving to mobile platforms, and 5G will make all of that a reality."
Qualcomm already has found success integrating its technology into early 5G devices, such as the Samsung A90 5G smartphone.
"With probably one exception, every 5G-announced smartphone design, in all the major [original equipment manufacturers], are using Qualcomm technologies."
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A big-screen adaptation of the anime “Chainsaw Man” has topped the North American box office, beating a Springsteen biopic and “Black Phone 2.” The movie earned $17.25 million in the U.S. and Canada this weekend. “Black Phone 2” fell to second place with $13 million. Two new releases, the rom-com “Regretting You” and “Springsteen — Deliver Me From Nowhere,” earned $12.85 million and $9.1 million, respectively. “Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc” is based on the manga series about a demon hunter. It's another win for Sony-owned Crunchyroll, which also released a “Demon Slayer” film last month that debuted to a record $70 million.
The Federal Aviation Administration says flights departing for Los Angeles International Airport were halted briefly due to a staffing shortage at a Southern California air traffic facility. The FAA issued a temporary ground stop at one of the world’s busiest airports on Sunday morning soon after U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy predicted that travelers would see more flights delayed as the nation’s air traffic controllers work without pay during the federal government shutdown. The hold on planes taking off for LAX lasted an hour and 45 minutes and didn't appear to cause continued problems. The FAA said staffing shortages also delayed planes headed to Washington, Chicago and Newark, New Jersey on Sunday.
Boeing workers at three Midwest plants where military aircraft and weapons are developed have voted to reject the company’s latest contract offer and to continue a strike that started almost three months ago. The strike by about 3,200 machinists at the plants in the Missouri cities of St. Louis and St. Charles, and in Mascoutah, Illinois, is smaller in scale than a walkout last year by 33,000 Boeing workers who assemble commercial jetliners. The president of the International Association of Machinists says Sunday's outcome shows Boeing hasn't adequately addressed wages and retirement benefits. Boeing says Sunday's vote was close with 51% of union members opposing the revised offer.
